‘The rail link had been cut by bombing the previous autumn, and the abutments had been built up as improvised blockhouses. Reasonably secure, but static. The defenders thought the east side was impregnable, and it cost them. The lateness of the thaw enabled the the riverbed to be used to move armor and fighting suits up unobserved. You see, while snow melt had covered the bed with mud to the depth of a man’s knee the riverbed below it was still quite frozen. It wouldn’t do for infantry, but something a little heavier could make good time and even been unobserved for most of the journey. The defenses were quite light, and consisted of a few light pieces on tractors and a support detachment of conscripts. The star shells make the whitewash on the vehicles glow. They looked like ghosts. They overwhelmed the defenders. It all seemed easy then, but the real work was in the preparation and knowing the ground. It’s easy to miss things.' – Lord Waldenglas, Memoirs